Dr Mancha Kumari Jha, recommended as Nepal’s ambassador to Sri Lanka, pledged to strengthen relations between the two countries during a presentation of her work plan to the Parliamentary Hearing Committee in Kathmandu. She said her priorities would include expanding trade, investment and air connectivity, and developing the relationship into an economic partnership. Her agenda also places tourism, cultural diplomacy, the Ramayana circuit and the promotion of Buddhist heritage among the areas she wants to advance.
An economic partnership at the centre of the plan
Jha’s proposed approach gives economic cooperation a central role. Rather than limiting bilateral engagement to diplomatic ties, she pledged to work towards a partnership that creates greater scope for trade and investment between Nepal and Sri Lanka. The plan presents closer economic links as an important objective of her proposed mission, alongside the broader effort to strengthen relations between the countries.
Her pledge to expand trade and investment sets out areas where she wants the relationship to develop. The work plan, as presented to the committee, identifies these as priorities but does not specify particular sectors, targets or projects. Its stated direction is to encourage stronger economic engagement and make bilateral ties more focused on practical cooperation.
Air connectivity is another part of that economic agenda. Jha identified improved links between Nepal and Sri Lanka as a priority, alongside trade and investment. Better air connections can support closer contact between the two countries, while also complementing the tourism links included in her proposal. Her plan therefore brings connectivity into the same framework as economic partnership, rather than treating it as a separate diplomatic concern.
Tourism and cultural diplomacy
Jha also highlighted tourism as an area for stronger Nepal-Sri Lanka cooperation. Tourism links feature among the priorities she presented to the hearing committee, reflecting her intention to build connections beyond commercial exchange. Her plan includes the Ramayana circuit and the promotion of Buddhist heritage as ways to give cultural and historical links a more prominent place in bilateral engagement.
The Ramayana circuit is part of the cultural diplomacy she wants to pursue. By naming it as a priority, Jha has placed the initiative within her proposed programme for strengthening ties and developing tourism connections. The work plan does not detail specific routes, activities or implementation arrangements, but identifies the circuit as one of the areas she would seek to promote.
The promotion of Buddhist heritage is another element of that agenda. Together with the Ramayana circuit, it gives the cultural and tourism strand of her proposal a clear focus. Jha’s stated priorities combine these heritage themes with wider efforts to expand tourism links, presenting cultural diplomacy as part of the relationship she hopes to build between Nepal and Sri Lanka.
A proposed agenda for bilateral ties
Taken together, the priorities Jha outlined span economic cooperation, connectivity, tourism and culture. Her pledge to transform bilateral relations into an economic partnership sets out the broader aim, while trade, investment and air connectivity are the practical areas she named for closer engagement. Tourism, the Ramayana circuit and Buddhist heritage add a cultural dimension to that proposed work.
Jha presented the plan to the Parliamentary Hearing Committee as the person recommended for Nepal’s ambassadorial post in Sri Lanka. Her pledges describe the areas she intends to prioritise if she takes up the role. The presentation places stronger Nepal-Sri Lanka ties at the heart of her proposed mission, with an emphasis on building economic cooperation while also advancing tourism and cultural diplomacy.
